Solent to S Brittany, day sailing

parsifal said:
I have been thinking of doing something like that this year because The Old Guvnor is beginning to get edgy if deprived of her golf and bridge for more than about 3 weeks at a time.

Have you been able to get a good discount for a few week's stay in French marinas, and cheap air [or ferry] fares when flying home?
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I understand :)

No special discounts, just standard French marina prices and airfares.

The marina prices are cheaper than the UK. If you are there for more than a month they start with the monthly rate, then weekly and then any odd days so it is noticeably cheaper than using just the daily rate.

Flybe prices are approx £100 return per person.

It only makes good sense if you either have no permanent UK berth or get a rebate.

If you email your marina of choice (in French - use Google translate) you usually get a helpful response by return.

For Flybe just try their website.
 
Thanks for that Playtime. I'll look into it further.

I do have a permanent berth in the UK but as it's a club berth it's not too expensive.
 
With a suitable boat & weather, I'd do it in one go, and have done as mate (3 up, with a seasick wife - turned out to be morning sickness ;-) almost exactly 72 hours Gosport -> Benodet - with a couple of hour anchoring waiting for the turn just north of the Raz.

Once you've decided to spend a night or two at sea, heading down channel, it's much less hassle than the stress of worrying about each night's stop.

TopTip: If you're in Concarneau and it blows, blag some tyres and move into the inner port and raft to a fishing boat - we were there in Aug 2004 when folks in Cornwall were van-surfing, and had an "interesting" night =:-O
 
mcframe said:
TopTip: If you're in Concarneau and it blows, blag some tyres and move into the inner port and raft to a fishing boat - we were there in Aug 2004 when folks in Cornwall were van-surfing, and had an "interesting" night =:-O
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I do believe I was in the Morbihan then. Nasty weather but I don't remember the wind being too bad where we were.
 
just to be different:

If the weather and the tides are right, why not consider stopping over on Ouessant and Ile de Re? Really pleasant places... and "different".
 
The swell can get into Concarneau in seriously bad weather and we have used rubber snubbers in extra bow and stern lines there. The October 1987 'hurricane' pretty well destroyed the marina and the pictures of the carnage were in a local photographers shop window for some years as a reminder. Benodet marinas can also suffer with gale force winds against the tide and we have once been asked to move out of a berth and go on a buoy upriver. La Trinite on the outer end of the visitor berths is also bad with strong wind over tide, again a place we have had the rubber snubbers in use. The anchorage in Auray River off Le Bono is good (and free or cheap on a buoy) in those conditions, or Port Du Crouesty marina which is more sheltered than the other Quiberon Bay harbours. Really bad weather can be a good reason to go into the Morbihan and up to Vannes beyond the lock!
 
our usual route is south coast then across to the L'abers then down... back via CI's. I went down via the CI's last year, it takes along time punching the tide west along the brittany coast... realistically you only get 4 hours of good tide going west...

tried to get from treb to l'aber last year in one hop in a 40 foot boat on a spring tide, which doesn't work really gave up at roscoff and had a horrid night on a buoy :(

my advice go via south coast if you have a crew.... you can do falmouth - laber in daylight hours in the summer... if your willing to use the donkey.

get down to south Brittany as soon as possible then sail slowly back.
 
Twister_Ken said:
An overnight Channel crossing is no prob, just that Madame would prefer not to have 24h+ without recourse to a nice walk.

OTOH might just bog off direct to Brest with a couple of mates and put her on the plane.
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We did just that in the old double decker (Victory 40) with a Westerly 7 blowing continuously. We averaged 6 knots, never put on our oilskins, and never got wet. Ran out of fuel in one tank (2 tanks) just as we entered Camaret, as I had underestimated a doubling of fuel consumption steaming into the wind!

Mind you, you will need a 1970's motor sailor to do that.....
 
TK, idea for you. You and me take it uphill to Falmouth. Mrs TK joins you there and you enjoy offwind sailing with madame for the rest of the hols?
 
Why the preference for Falmouth Ken? That is another longish sail from say Dartmouth, over 60 miles, yet only shortens the distance to L'Aberwrac'h by about 17 miles. I can see the advantage of making the extra westing but that is offset by another 60ml day and maybe another shopping day after:). We used to head about 210 magnetic from Dartmouth to our Chenal Du Four waypoint, so maybe 205 to L'Aberwrac'h and anything WSW and up will do nicely as a free wind. We have gone from Salcombe once when we got bored of waiting in Dartmouth for the wind to drop below 6/7 and that is closer but then is not so convenient for shops if there any time.

With just 3 weeks and lots of nicer places to see the other side the best idea IMO is to get down quick and be free to dawdle back. There are quickeners that can be used on the way home, like going from L'Aberwrac'h direct to St Peter Port, then from there to home if you are running short of time.

Another consideration I think is easy access on shore to decent food shopping. There are good supermarkets in Camaret, Concarneau, Crouesty and La Trinite that are close by the visitor spots, even two surprisingly good little mini-markets on Houat, but other places are much more limited in choice nearby for a major shop. Having done the shoreside tours in early years, later on we spent a lot more time anchoring, but planned on a run into town say every 5 days for water, food, laundry and top up the electrics if needed.
 
Robin & others that know S Brittany,


The DS only has room for a small dinghy so it takes 3 trips for 6 people. Only got 2 weeks in total and 4 days will be there & back! Late July early August will we need to anchor off in S Brittany or will we get into marinas?

Would prefer to avoid buying a bigger inflatable as 3 man is all that fits in cockpit locker!

I will go Hamble - Guernsey then L'aber W'rach but may go straight through the Four to Cameret if I can time it right - any opinion?

Obviously all determined by weather as gentlemen (andmy boat) don't beat (very well!)


Thanks
 
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Sailfree said:
Robin & others that know S Brittany,


The DS only has room for a small dinghy so it takes 3 trips for 6 people. Only got 2 weeks in total and 4 days will be there & back! Late July early August will we need to anchor off in S Brittany or will we get into marinas?

Would prefer to avoid buying a bigger inflatable as 3 man is all that fits in cockpit locker!

I will go Hamble - Guernsey then L'aber W'rach but may go straight through the Four to Cameret if I can time it right - any opinion?

Obviously all determined by weather as gentlemen (andmy boat) don't beat (very well!)


Thanks
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we took 6 weeks round about july last year and went to south brittany and back. you find everybody moves around together so their is space, especially if you have a quick boat.... dingy wise you should only need it for the islands ie.... the glenans and the islands further south. but i guess you wont get any further than the glenans in your time scale.
 
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